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How to Lead Your Zombie Organization Back to Life

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Drawing on experience from unionized workplaces, technology, management, start-ups and government, Vala-Webb notes that the structure and philosophy of many organizations today do not match the reality of the world. Why do organizations tend to believe that the world is stable (and act accordingly) when we know that the world is highly volatile and uncertain? In a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, chaotic and ambiguous) world, organizations need to do better or else they risk becoming zombies. Vala-Webb starts out by explaining what the problems are with zombie organizations — they aren’t responsive, they aren’t nimble, they can’t predict what’s coming — they just amble along in a slow straight line with one solitary focus, regardless of the changing environment. Then, Vala-Webb presents the good stuff: how to lead your organization back to life. It won’t be easy, but the rewards will be worth it. Your organization will be able to make decisions faster, your culture will progress, teams and leaders will be effective and finances will improve. Vala-Webb’s book comes with some useful checklists and assessments to get you started, so pick up this book and start reading — unless you too have become a zombie.

Do you want to know if you’re working in a zombie organization? Take the “Z” score test to see how you measure up.

Gordon Vala-Webb shared one of the assessments from his book with us—don’t be scared, download the test to find out if the zombie virus is loose in your workplace: “Z” score: Is your organization a zombie?

Lisa Sansom

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